She came a step closer to achieving that goal when the Olympic champion, Evan Lysacek, asked to skate with her twice when he was visiting the capital - a moment Zahra described as the most significant and rewarding of her skating career.

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I assume UAE first would have to become a member of the ISU in order for her to have the opportunity to qualify for the Winter Olympics?

Zahra said: &#8220;I train six days a week, before school and after. Before school I get up at 4.30am and do off-ice exercise followed by on-ice training, running through routines and practicing.
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Zahra&#8217;s dream is to represent the UAE in the Olympics, but she jokes: &#8220;I&#8217;ll have to start learning to land my triples first!&#8221;

And she has already had a brush with figure skating royalty in Evan Lysacek, the 2010 Olympic and 2009 World Champion. "He is my idol and I even skated with him in Abu Dhabi. I want to take part in the Winter Olympics in 2014 if I can get everything right. If not I will be ready when the 2018 Olympics come around," she said.

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She sure is getting attention, great! Good luck to her with her goals.

1. Figure skating costumes are really not Shariah-compliant, and if they are, they are unwatchable. It's not just about the headcover.

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What's not Sharia-compliant about her outfit? It's a little tight, sure, but I've definitely seen hijabis wearing tighter clothes in public. And of course, Muslims love to get our sparkle on, so there's that...

I love that they described her outfit as "sober." I was hoping for more hijabis to get into figure skating after the ISU allowed pants for ladies in competition and it looks like it's starting

What's not Sharia-compliant about her outfit? It's a little tight, sure, but I've definitely seen hijabis wearing tighter clothes in public. And of course, Muslims love to get our sparkle on, so there's that...

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I was wondering about the sober thing too, I wonder if they meant "somber." It's a little out there to infer that orange tutus are drunk, non?

There's nothing wrong with her outfit in my eyes. But conventional interpretation of Shariah compliance is that female outfits cannot draw attention to the body. And without emphasizing beautiful lines, there is no figure skating. The fatwa factory crowd will for sure be throwing a hissy fit because she's "displaying herself" for all and sundry. At one of the forums I read, there was an indignant comment of "if she's that determined to skate, why couldn't she do it where no unrelated males could see her?" I was like, ummm...sure....I hear imaratis are all filthy rich...maybe her Dad can buy her a skating rink where she'll skate in total solitude.

I hope that she will inspire more girls to get into skating, and I hope that she will not get more flack than she can easily bear.

Photos and protocols from an event in Dubai last year are on the skating clubs homepage http://www.queenoficeworld.org/v1/ from the pictures all the girls seem to be in normal skating dresses without any head cover. It's great that there are skating opportunites for the kids there.

Photos and protocols from an event in Dubai last year are on the skating clubs homepage http://www.queenoficeworld.org/v1/ from the pictures all the girls seem to be in normal skating dresses without any head cover.

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Yes, but it looks like a lot of those kids are from expat families. And IIRC Dubai is relatively liberal in the Middle East regarding how women dress.

Actually what's covering her head is no different than this and as long as it remains as part of the costume, she can call it what ever she wants, it would be legal. I'm more surprised her father doesn't have a problem with the nude illusion fabric.

The second picture where her outfit is grey, black and blue, it's very tight and revealing. Hope she will not get in trouble with the hardliners. Figure skating does attract the eyes to the body line like few other sports do.

Good on her. We've had skaters from Iran competing at the World Roller Championships since about 2008 (I think). They also wear the hijab. They were so welcomed by the audience and other skaters it was really wonderful to see. By the end of the week these quiet very shy young girls were getting their photos taken with World Champions and were just beaming with joy. Coaches from all over the world were also introducing themselves to the Iranian coaches and giving them tips and advice. It was one of the mot memorable experiences from that week.

I don't know--even KSA has female athletes competing internationally in pants and hijab.

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The government of Saudi Arabia does not endorse any of its citizen female athletes entering or performing in international athletic competitions as a matter of policy. Any Saudi national women competing are doing it on their own initiative and volition.

Hit send too soon - you must be thinking of other Gulf countries like Bahrain or UAE. Not KSA.

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No, KSA. There's at least one Saudi woman vying for an Olympic berth this summer in equestrian, and then there's the female soccer/football team that competes internationally IIRC. There may be others, but those are the ones that I recall from KSA.

No, KSA. There's at least one Saudi woman vying for an Olympic berth this summer in equestrian, and then there's the female soccer/football team that competes internationally IIRC. There may be others, but those are the ones that I recall from KSA.

Getting this thread back on track, I'm happy for Lari. She's a pioneer and shows that hijab does not have to be an impediment to participating in figure skating. Plus, this is also great for figure skating in that region. Hopefully, there will be other girls and women who follow in her footsteps.

I remember Vanessa Giunchi covered her hair almost completely with some really large hairband/headband/shaul/scarf, skating her beautiful Schindler's list program back in 2001. The hijab shouldn't be a problem at all. Way to go girl, I'm very happy for her

Getting this thread back on track, I'm happy for Lari. She's a pioneer and shows that hijab does not have to be an impediment to participating in figure skating. Plus, this is also great for figure skating in that region. Hopefully, there will be other girls and women who follow in her footsteps.